CHAMPAIGN – Bret Bielema knows how to throw a party.

It’s evident, listening to the list of the weekend, from the paint ball to the group texts to the elaborate photo shoots.

The first-year Illini football coach wasn’t shy when it came to the first official campus visits in his tenure here. The message was received from roughly 16 recruits, half of them already committed to the Illini.

“It went perfect,’’ said Hunter Whitenack, a massive lineman from New Carlisle, Ind., who chose the Illini in part because of Bielema’s track record for sending guys to the NFL. “Everything was a lot of fun.’’

Some guys were already sold on the Illini, even before getting to get their hands on the fancy stuff at the Smith Football Center and meeting coaches face to face. More importantly, for the Illini rebuilding project under Bielema, it was a great first impression from a program trying to regain its swagger after some sleepy off-the-field years under Lovie Smith.

As Bielema has said, tell him the rules, and his program will figure out how best to attack the next challenge. In first big showcase of the program, Bielema apparently ignited a wave of momentum needed to recharge recruiting.

VISIT RECAPS: Hunter Whitenack | Malachi Hood | Joey Okla | Hank Beatty

MORE: Recruiting roundup | Full visitor list